Day 2 Coverage of Grand Prix Montreal 2014

Sunday, March 16, 2014

The call of the judge keeps time for competitors that have returned for Day 1 of Grand Prix Montreal. What started as a Canadian Grand Prix record of 1,622 players has been pared down to just 170. Among them are 7th-ranked Shahar Shenhar, 11th-ranked Alexander Hayne, and multiple Grand Prix Top 8 competitors David Ochoa and Gerard Fabiano - the latter who went undefeated on Day 1 alongside Daniel Fournier, Michael Ando, Philip Dettelis, and Geoff Risi.

What lies in store today? Six rounds of Born of the Gods-Theros-Theros Draft stand between the start of Round 10 and a final draft at Top 8. Tune in for live coverage at twitch.tv/magic starting shortly after 10 AM local time.

Born of the Gods First Picks #1 – David Ochoa and (8) Josh Utter-Leyton

by Adam Styborski

Choosing the first pick of a pack can set the stage for a strong draft, or send you tumbling down the road of tough decisions. On Day 2, every player starts with the choice of one of fourteen Born of the Gods cards. Though some may certainly be easy, choosing the best card possible from a pack can be tougher than it looks.

Here's a fresh cracked pack of Born of the Gods. Think carefully a moment and make your pick.

What did you choose? We caught up with David Ochoa and 8th-ranked Josh Utter-Leyton to get their thoughts on the pack.

"You're more likely to end up playing it," Ochoa explained after immediately grabbing Retraction Helix. "Bile Blight and Vanguard of Brimaz are both good, but it's less likely you'll be able to play them if you get forced out of your color. If the color of the card you took her is getting drafted to your right, ideally you'll still want to be able to play it. With Helix it's possible to be in blue and still play a ten some land, seven Island mana base."

Is it really that simple? Ochoa seemed to believe that. "It's basically a pick between Helix and Blight, but Helix is more versatile. It can deal with creatures that have already been bestowed, unlike Blight that can only deal with smaller creatures. Blue's a little shallow but it's got the most flexible spells."

Would Josh Utter-Leyton take a different pick? "I'm not going to take the red card out of the pack, so it's between Blight and Helix. I think I'd go with Blight," Utter-Leyton said.

Success!

"Actually, I think I'd rather go with the Helix," he tragically continued after a moment's more thought.

Why did Utter-Leyton make the switch? "Blight is double black. I'm a lot more likely to play the Helix in your deck," he explained, echoing Ochoa. "There's three base colors in this format: White is the best, then black, then green. Blue is a support color, but the best blue cards are the best support cards. Having blue as your support color is really ideal. By taking Blight you're committing to base Black. You can play Helix in a base anything deck.

So what about Akroan Conscriptor, a card both Ochoa and Utter-Leyton has pulled aside as really powerful? "It's power level is on par with Helix," Utter-Leyton said, "but I'd rather be blue than red. With three red cards in the pack, signaling is a thing. You'll create more red drafters to the left passing these. Theros can't support three red drafters. That's an easy tie-breaker between Conscriptor and Retraction Helix."

Pack 1, Pick 1 #2

by Josh Bennett

Sometimes the packs are kind, and you sit down to a draft confronted with an obviously busted rare. Most of the time, however, your first pick requires careful weighing of close alternatives. Remember: Your chance at a Top 8 hinges on this decision. No pressure. Click below to see the pack and make your decision.

"These picks are so much harder when there's no white cards. Really I'm mentally flipping a coin here between this and Bolt of Keranos. Some people like Sudden Storm more, and that's a fine pick too."

Round 10 Feature Match - (7) Shahar Shenhar vs. Valentin Mackl

by Adam Styborski

When you're a three-time Grand Prix champion, reigning 2013 World Champion, and currently ranked 7th in Pro Player standings, what brings you to battle in Montreal?

Shahar Shenhar was looking for nothing less than a Top 8 here in Montreal.

"I was staying in Boston," Shahar Shenhar said. "I'm staying with Dave Shiels and friends through the StarCityGames Invitational." The camaraderie and friendship found among pro players is a common theme for those at the top. Making friends not only gives you places to stay as you travel the world, but people to play and pass the time with.

Facing off against Shahar was another familiar face and world traveler: Valentin Mackl. With three 2013 Grand Prix Top 8s to his name, Mackl was still looking for that final breakthrough. With a Limited Top 8 at Grand Prix Valencia, Mackl's skill with booster packs wasn't in question.

Making another run to a Top 8 would require perfection from both competitors, and losing here likely meant the dream for winning would be over.

The first game was a constant race. An early Wingsteed Rider and Anvilwrought Raptor gave Shenhar an aerial pair to fly over the defensive creatures Mackl played. However, Mackl bestowed twice upon his Meletis Astronomer to provide a nigh unblockable beatstick to race back.

Down to 6 life to Shenhar's 16, Mackl had to do a lot of damage to catch up. Sip of Hemlock off the top put Shenhar down to just Nyxborn Shieldmate, letting Mackl's motley crew of critters take an 8 life chunk out of Shenhar's lead. Without any more creatures to play, Shenhar was quickly overrun with what Mackl had left.

"So were you here for pro points?" Mackl asked after Shenhar extended the hand.

"Top 8," Shenhar said.

"You probably can't make it then, can you?"

"Probably not."

"Well good luck anyway," Mackl offered in condolence.

"Thanks. You too."

Valentin Mackl defeats (7) Shahar Shenhar, 2-0

How did his draft go? "I guess pretty well," Mackl said with a smile. "I started off with Phenax, God of Deception. Obviously I tried to be blue-black. I cut off all the black in the first pack – literally picked every black card I saw. In the second pack I got rewarded for cutting black pretty hard. Even though I opened up nothing good I got passed Agent of Fates and Abhorrent Overlord. Then I grabbed some value as well," said Mackl, flashing a Thoughtseize as well.

"Obviously Gray Merchant of Asphodel is the best card in the deck," said Mackl, fanning a suite of black creatures. With so many ways to rack up devotion to black in his deck there wasn't much room to disagree with Mackl's claim.

Sunday, 2:00 p.m. - The Ideal Born of the Gods Draft Deck

by Adam Styborski

Born of the Gods Draft has been out for well over a month at our local stores, and almost as long on Magic Online. With a Pro Tour to its name in the books, the environment has had a chance to mature among the game's elite players.

That's why we caught up with Matt Costa, Grand Prix Baltimore 2012 winner and Pro Tour Dark Ascension Top 8 competitor – among his other premier Magic highlights. We asked a seemingly simple question that cut to the heart of the format: What is the ideal Born of the Gods Draft deck?

Is Born of the Gods Draft as aggressive as we've been told? Matt Costa believes so.

"An aggressive, heroic deck slanted towards white – playing eleven or twelve Plains – that's ideally white-blue," Costa answered after thinking a moment. "White is simply the deepest and most powerful color, particularly in Born of the Gods: it has the best commons. It's aggressive, but it's capable of building big creatures to punch through in the late game. At the same time you have to contend with others' ability to make big creatures. Aggressive decks can take advantage of blue cards like Sudden Storm and Griptide. Blue has the best bestow creatures: Nyxborn Triton and Nimbus Naiad."

Do you think that's what most players think? "I think it's a common perception," Costa said. "Certainly that's the way it felt at the Pro Tour and I imagine the world has already caught up to that."

Does that affect how drafts bear out? "I think it does to an extent," Costa explained, "but one of the weird things about Born of the Gods is that the overall card quality is low, so the presence of signaling and some of the decision-making isn't there because you run out of playable cards really quick. A lot of the time your draft will actually be determined by what you open with your second pack –Theros."

"That said I don't think blue's a very good main color in any deck," Costa continued. "I think blue wants to be the lesser of two colors in a deck that's predominantly another color. In general in this format you want your mana to look like ten-seven or eleven-six," Costa said, referring to the distribution of basic lands. "When you're closer to even I think it's representative of a draft that didn't work out right, or was unfocused about the direction you were headed."

What does Costa mean? "The reason is because hitting your curve is so important. If your mana is split more evenly it's harder to guarantee that you curve out. You want the majority of your creatures in a single color so you can maximize the amount of sources of that color to ensure hitting your curve.

Why is hitting your curve so important? "It's pretty hard to interact overall," said Costa. "It's really race-oriented format. One of the best way to beat a draw you can't beat is to be faster."

Coming from a player who loves to cast copies of Jace, Costa's call to curves and aggression shouldn't go unheeded.

Round 11 Feature Match - Greg Ogreenc vs Brock Parker

by Josh Bennett

The Players

Greg Ogreenc has come into the public eye this past year thanks to a pair of Grand Prix Top 8s. His draft today is a three-color concoction featuring powerful mythics. Across from him is the venerable Brock Parker, beard enthusiast and Pro Tour Boston 2003 Champion as a member of The Brockafellars (teammates Hall of Famer Huey Jensen and Worlds '99 semifinalist Matt Linde). Parker pulled together a very fast White-Green deck with a diverse suite of tricks.

Parker 1 - Ogreenc 0

Ogreenc seemed torn during sideboarding. He went back to it once, then changed his mind and they were off. Parker opened with a strong sequence of Soldier of the Pantheon, Snarecaster tapping Bronze Sable, and then Elite Skirmisher. Ogreenc dropped Pheres-Band Tromper and tried to hold his ground. Parker thought for a moment, then played Ordeal of Heliod on the Skirmisher, tapping the Sable, and swung with all his creatures. Ogreenc put the Tromper in front of the Soldier. Mortal's Ardor made it a one-for-two.

The bad news for Parker was that Ogreenc was sitting on Time to Feed. The Sable took one for the team to keep the Skirmisher from getting out of hand. He also summoned Leafcrown Dryad and passed. Parker passed a blank turn, keeping his Snarecaster at home. A Bestowed Noble Quarry forced him to make another bad trade, this time his creature and Acolyte's Reward for the Leafcrown Dryad.

Greg Ogreenc

So far, so good for Ogreenc, but his deck had other ideas. The only offence it offered him were some Sedge Scorpions. Parker was likewise short on action, but managed to find a Cavalry Pegasus to bestow Nyxborn Shieldmate onto. Ogreenc was forced to spend Artisan's Sorrow on the Shieldmate to stay level and to desperately dig for his big threats. Two cards went to the bottom, but still he drew brick after brick. Parker matched him for a few turns, but then found Phalanx Leader and Nylea's Emissary, which were enough to take the match.

Parker 2 - Ogreenc 0

The Aftermath

First I sat down with Ogreenc for a post-mortem. My first question was if he had been considering siding out his blue in what looked like a very fast matchup. "Oh absolutely. The problem was, first I sided in Artisan's Sorrow, and if I take out blue there are other changes I'd need to make. My sideboard has a lot of options in it. Then I looked at the clock and we were already down to thirty minutes and [Parker] had presented his deck. I felt I couldn't make the change without going over sideboarding time so I decided to just go with it for game two and make the change in game three."

I asked him if he had any difficulties thanks to playing three colors and he shook his head. "My mana's actually really good. The only actual blue card I'm playing is Kiora, and my red is very light as well. Only Stormbreath is RR. So I get to play two islands, five mountains, Unknown Shores and still have room for nine forests. And I have Karametra's Favor."

Later I caught up with Parker to get his take on how the match had gone. "I think I probably played bad. Both games my opening hands were not great. You know, I had all these tricks. I think I could've used them better. The Ordeal play, I don't know."

I told him that his deck seemed a lot better than it looked early in game one, what with the Last Breath and Ephara's Warden, and he laughed. "Yeah, I've got a couple stinkers for sure. The deck's really good overall, though. I have two Ordeals, lots of good creatures. After pack one I was worried I was going to open Elspeth and Phalanx Leader and have to pass Elspeth. Luckily I only opened Phalanx Leader."

Sunday, 3:45 p.m. - Draft 1 - (8) Shahar Shenhar

by Josh Bennett

Reigning World Champion Shahar Shenhar is looking to kickstart a year that feels like a sophomore jinx. Despite middling finishes at both Pro Tours, Shenhar hasn't lost his killer instinct, and his spirit remains high. I sat in on his first draft of the day, where his 7-2 record meant he needed a 3-0 to have a shot at Top 8.

Shahar Shenhar

Things started off auspiciously. His first pack served up Akroan Skyguard, the set's marquee common. Then came Glimpse the Sun God, one of the best uncommons for aggressive heroic decks, and then a Nyxborn Shieldmate, an ideal turn-three play in a deck full of two-drops. Fourth pick he dipped into a second color for Asphyxiate in a pack whose only other notable card was Archetype of Imagination. "I don't like Archetype at all. Asphyxiate is a good signal that black is open, and I don't mind playing aggressive black-white. In Triple-Theros draft black-white was usually a control deck, but Born of the Gods gives you a lot of strong early plays."

"At the end of pack 1 I'm still open. I have a core of very good white cards, with a late Elite Skirmisher as a signal that white will be open pack three. I could still end up white-green, white-red or white-black."

Pack 3 should have been a windfall for Shenhar after the setup in the first pack. First up was a pack with no good white cards besides the legendary Anax and Cymede. I asked Shenhar of this was a tough pick.

"Even at this point, I don't have to play black. I have a few black cards, but my white is good enough that I can afford to switch, especially for a card as powerful as Anax and Cymede." Next he took Arena Athlete over Leonin Snarecaster, the only white creature in the pack. It was more a calculated risk than a full commitment to red. "This was pretty straightforward. If I take the Snarecaster, there's absolutely no way the Athlete comes back. This way I get a shot at two creatures. The risk is worth it even if I abandon red. But I probably won't"

That was the end of the real decisions. The remaining packs were dismal, and Shenhar could only shake his head as he collected underwhelming curve-fillers like Satyr Rambler and Anvilwrought Raptor. Still, he was optimistic.

"Obviously pack three was the worst. I'm playing a few suboptimal cards, but I've got fifteen creatures and my spells are great. It sucks having to play Griffin Dreamfinder but even that can get an early Fearsome Temper if I get blown out."

It wasn't the deck he'd hoped for, but he figured that 3-0 was still a real possibility.

Drafting Born of the Gods with Undefeated Daniel Fournier

by Adam Styborski

The last undefeated player was as close to Top 8 as you get three rounds out from the end of Swiss. Daniel Fournier had been triumphant so far in Born of the Gods Limited, and we wanted to peek inside the process for the current "King of the Hill" and see how he's been handling the drafts today.

Daniel Fournier was at the top of the tide of wins, remaining undefeated through both Day 1 and the first draft of Day 2 at Grand Prix Montreal.

What did you draft at the start of the day?

"I drafted red-white, not particularly heroic," Fournier said. "Basically I noticed red and white were very open. I like the archetype and it was basically handed to me: I got like an eleventh pick Thunderous Might. I think that cards like top two or top three cards in the set."

How did that go?

"In packs two and three I opened Anax and Cymede and was passed a fourth pick Spear of Heliod. It looked like I was the only person at the table in those colors. I worked out well."

Did you have a plan for the second draft?

"I had talked with Alexander Hayne before sitting down for the second and he reminded me I 'just' have to 1-2 the draft," Fournier said. "I've never really attempted to do that before – I've never been in the winning position. So I did what I was used to and kept in mind I wanted a consistent deck: one or two colors, not being greedy. Otherwise, I don't like forcing archetypes in a draft."

And how did that go?

"Average; a little awkward.," Fournier admitted. "Red seemed open to me in pack one, but red is bad in Theros and very good in Born of the Gods. I'm fairly certain I passed the guy to the left of me into red, and it seemed like I was getting cut very hard. Fortunately I was able to pick up some good blue cards in pack two."

"I thought about it," Fournier said. "I play black-red in practice, and I lose with it. The card forces you into the black-red strategy that's unfortunately mediocre. Unlike Xenagos, God of Revels and some of the other Gods the static ability isn't as good. Sometimes it's just '2 you.' and it's just mediocre."

Were you surprised how quickly white and red dried up in the second pack?

"Not really. The plan was by the end of pack one was to figure out what color was open and being passed to me in pack two. I thought it was white because I was passed Phalanx Leader – I wanted white. But that wasn't the case."

What led you to commit to blue?

"Good blue cards were going late. A lot of these packs had Voyage's End, Griptide, and a playable blue creature. With that density I felt it was the best color. Plus you can play a bunch of reasonable blue and red cards and win. Voyage's End is insane."

"That was the difficult one," Fournier said. When he saw the pack is had to put it down and think, unlike the rest of his picks throughout the draft. "Generally, I would want the Lighting Strike at that point. I was kind of low on burn spells and burn's good. I think I had two Triton Fortune Hunters and I needed more ways to trigger them. Ordeal of Purphoros is obviously one of the best ways to do that."

How do you feel about your deck this time?

"Much less happy than the first one. I couldn't have asked of better first draft. This is like a 6, or maybe a 7. I'm not confident, but I guess it's fine."

Daniel Fournier went on win Round 13 and secure a Top 8 berth for Grand Prix Montreal.

Round 13 Feature Match - Daniel Fournier vs. Terrence Dufour

by Josh Bennett

The Players

Daniel Fournier is a longtime player with plenty of Grand Prix experience under his belt. The sole remaining undefeated player, he's looking to put a bow on an already outstanding weekend by completing the 13-0 sweep, which would lock up a Top 8 berth. He's drafted an aggressive blue-red deck.

His opponent, Terrence Dufour, is on quite a ride at this, his first Grand Prix. Sitting at 12-1, he just finished a sweep of his first draft. His red-black minotaurs deck decimated his opponents. Now he's playing a more middle-of-the-road deck in the Jund colors.

Here things began to go very wrong for Dufour. He aimed Lash of the Whip at the Fortune Hunter, and Fournier punished him with a cantripped Voyage's End. Worse, after Fournier replayed it, Dufour doubled down with a Sip of Hemlock. Fournier turned over a second Voyage's End. Dufour had no action that could overcome that much card advantage, and Fournier quickly took the game.

Fourier took two, drew his card, and thought. His frown deepened. Eventually he tapped two for Thunderous Might on Satyr Rambler and attacked with both his creatures. Dufour confirmed that the Rambler was a 5/1 and considered his position, then let both creatures through, falling to eleven. Fournier passed back with two mana open.

Daniel Fournier

Dufour hoped to turn the race in his favor with Portent of Betrayal, but it was not to be. He stole the enchanted Satyr and swung in. Voyage's End sent Skullcleaver back to his hand. Dufour had also left himself defenseless. Fournier untapped, attacked, and showed him Bolt of Keranos for the win.

The Aftermath

With a shrug, Fournier said "Okay maybe this deck IS good."

"I'm not so sure about mine," said Dufour with a laugh.

"Well keep winning and hopefully I'll see you in Top 8."

Now 11-2, Dufour didn't like his chances. "This deck, the cards just didn't come. I wound up having to be three colors and it's not even that powerful." Still, he had his game face on. He shrugged off his loss and got ready for the next round.

Meanwhile, the pressure was off Fournier. I asked him about his road to 13-0. His Day 1 Sealed had looked quite good from the little I saw of it. "Well it had two bombs and I drew them a lot. Really the deck sort of built itself, it was the only way pool could go. I thought I might 8-1, but I didn't think it could do 9-0. I just never got screwed."

I asked him about his 3-0 draft deck and his face lit up with a grin. "Oh man, that might have been the best deck I've had in this format. Let me put it this way: I was red-white after Pack 1. In both my other packs I opened Anax and Cymede. I also got a 4th pick Spear of Heliod. The deck was a total gift." By contrast he rated his current deck about a six out of ten.

I asked if he had anything else to add about making his first Top 8. "I want to make sure that people know: I didn't outplay my opponents. I just ran hotter than the sun."

To Win and In – Stories from Round 15

by Adam Styborski

One more match win.

It sounds so simple, but it's an elusive goal players face every Grand Prix Day 2. At Montreal, several players were positioned to carry through to one more Born of the Gods draft in the Top 8. But for each it required victory in the match.

For some, the match came easier. Morgan Chang and Adam Benn played through two games before Benn decided that Chang should continue on to the Top 8.

Morgan Chang was overwhelmed with his move to the Top 8.

Chang was paired down against Benn, so the unexpected concession lifted the feeling at the table. "I'm so grateful," Chang said. This pair down wasn't alone: Andre Boucher-Frappier was similarly situated against formerly undefeated Geoff Risi. Boucher-Frappier had battled back from a two-loss start to be poised for a third draft. In this case, after three quick games that ended with Risi controlling a Battlewise Hoplite with four +1/+1 counters on it, Boucher-Frappier fell.

On the live coverage stream, Magic Online Community Cup member and streamer Kenji Egashira, also known as NumottheNummy, lit the twitch.tv/magic up as he lost to Benjamin Gomes, putting the latter into the Top 8. This was Gomes's third win-and-in for Grand Prix Top 8. This time, the success story was his.

Egashira's hat didn't distract Gomes from what he needed to do.

Also on camera, Dave Shiels used the legendary Daxos of Meletis to claim his third draft over Maxime Dore. Elsewhere, former Pro Tour champion Brock Parker looked to secure his place but lost to Judah Alt, though Parker was hopeful: "I hope my tiebreakers hold up." (Spoiler: They did.)

Ian Robertson too was in a paired down situation against Terrence Dufour. Going to a third game with Gorgon's Head on Dufour's side against Whip of Erebos and Reaper of the Wilds on Robertson's, it was only a matter of time until scrying and Whipping found a Top 8 lock for Robertson. Sometimes it takes all the time in the round to find the means to victory.

Being one match away and losing is tough for any player to face, but for those who move on it's a phenomenal moment players were seeking all weekend long. After all, from here it's just "one more draft."